Help! I can’t think of a single New Year’s resolution I haven’t already made and promptly broken. How do I make a New Year’s resolution I can keep? Should I keep trying the old ones or start new ones? Do people who successfully keep their resolutions make a special kind of resolution??? Are there resolutions to avoid? And what about my Second Life?
Hopefully,
Promesa Esperanzado
Dear Promesa,
In developing New Year’s resolutions, there are lots of missteps you should take pains to avoid. In our brave new world, it is easy to fall prey to TV (or other intrusive media) advertising. For example, you may see a lovely looking person with Crohn’s disease. It’s perfectly natural to want to be like her and have the disease as well. However, be forewarned, this is an ad for a TREATMENT, not a disease. You needn’t have the disease to be equally attractive. Do NOT incorporate it into your to-do list.
You also do not want to be sucked into a resolution to do something like trying the other half of a Twix bar. This will not help you in any way. It will not improve your standing with other members of the human race. Both bars in a Twix package are the same, whatever they say in the ads.
New Year’s celebrations began in pre-Christian times, beginning (in our own cultural milieu, at least) with the Babylonians. They made promises to their gods at the start of their year (in March) that they would return borrowed objects and pay their debts.
The Romans, in turn, began each year by making promises to the god Janus, for whom the month of January is named. Janus is the two-faced god who looks backward into the old year and forward into the new. Janus was also the patron and protector of arches, gates, doors, doorways, and therefore endings and beginnings. Frequently, images of Janus feature not only two faces, but a young face and an old face.
The Romans, of course, engaged in pagan revelry. Nevertheless, the custom of setting “New Year's resolutions” with a moral flavor was also the norm in Rome, and mostly they were variations on being good to others. But when Rome adopted Christianity as its state religion in the 4th century, the revelry became less pagan, and the resolutions more spiritual. The revelry, of course did not disappear, cuz Christians, except for some sects, liked to party as much as anyone, pagan or otherwise.
In the Medieval era, at the end of the Christmas season each year, knights were required to place their hands on a roasted (and feather decorated) peacock and vow to continue living up to their pledge of chivalry. Christians had adopted the peafowl as a symbol of immortality, and, of course, after the ceremony, the bird was eaten in a VERY festive setting. (I think there were ladies/wenches also present.)
At Watchnight services, many Christians prepare for the year ahead by praying and making resolutions. Though it exists in many Christian traditions, the ritual was formalized by Methodists as a godly alternative to times of drunken revelry, such as Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, indulged in by other sects. Typically, resolutions were enumerated as commitments to better employing one's talents, treating one's neighbors with charity, and avoiding one's habitual sins. For Catholics and others, Midnight Mass and the Eucharist may replicate the Watchnight and Lovefeast, but Catholics, at least, seek to maintain a tradition of pagan revelry as well.
In the Unites States, an example of such revelry is the Tournament of Roses, "a festival of flowers, music and equestrian and sports events unequaled anywhere in the world." (At least for those of you who have recovered sufficiently by mid-morning or so.)
Of course, the New Year traditions have never been exclusively Christian. During Judaism's New Year through the High Holidays and culminating in Yom Kippur, one is to reflect upon one's behavior over the year and both seek and offer forgiveness. The concept is the same kind of reflection with an eye toward self-improvement in any creed.
Anyway, time to look at typical resolutions over the years.
At the end of the 19th century, a typical New Year’s resolution was focused on good works. People resolved to become less self-centered, more helpful, more diligent workers, and to improve internal character. Body image, health, diet, and desired possessions were rarely mentioned.
At the end of the 20th century, typical resolutions were totally self-centered and often focused on good looks. People wanted to improve their physique, hairstyle, makeup, and fashionability. At the start of the 21st century, about 40 percent of Americans created even more superficial and self-centered resolutions. A few popular New Year’s resolutions might include: lose weight, exercise more, drink less alcohol, eat healthier foods, drink more water, pay off one's credit cards, find a better job, or manage stress more efficiently.
The University of Scranton Journal of Clinical Psychology reports the following popular resolutions:
1 - Lose Weight
2 - Get Organized
3 - Spend Less, Save More
4 - Enjoy Life to the Fullest
5 - Stay Fit and Healthy
6 - Learn Something Exciting
7 - Quit Smoking
8 - Help Others in Their Dreams
9 - Fall in Love
10 - Spend More Time with Family
Okay... We all know you're not gonna get fit, drink less booze, spend less, get organized, be a nicer person, or be more tolerant of ppl who bug you. Resolutions in Real Life are SERIOUS business, and I think I’ve made some realistic suggestions as to what they might be. But here are some things that I guarantee you can do in Second Life, and you will prolly be able to stick with them if you make ANY effort at all:
1 – Stay calm. Don't be bothered by silly things like griefers. Staying calm spoils their fun. They're looking for a reaction, so they get bored and lose interest if you just stay calm. Don’t be needlessly aggressive in retaliation… There are many tools at your disposal.
2 - "Semper ubi sub ubi!" Always where under where. (That's a pun... Actual Latin would be "Semper gere interulae.") But you know why you need undies in SL, I'm sure. (If you don’t, contact Harry Bailey, who is a perfect gentleman, and will explain.)
3 - Reorganize your inventory... Or at least dump some trash, and do it more than once in your multi-year history.
4 - Get yourself some nice mesh feetz. The feetz you avatar came with are prolly worthless, so get some good ones.
5 - Make contact with someone in RL at least once a day. (You can do this using electronic media.)
6 – Play Zyngo ‘til you run out of Lindens, and then STOP!
7 – Alternatively, buy more Lindens, and play your chosen Zyngo machines until you have either exhausted your credit or have become a Lindillionaire. Hey, they’re gonna pay off sooner or later, right? Your call, Dudette!
8 – Stop stalking your crushes and mind your own business. Stalking is a silly behavior, unfortunately made extremely easy by the many spying mechanisms in SL.
9 - Alternatively, stalk your prey fully utilizing all of the technological marvels at your disposal: avatar trackers, spy cameras, etc.
10 – Check your “Received Items” occasionally... You may be surprised at what you own.
Okay, you may think these suggestions are silly. Feel free to make up your own resolutions for both RL and SL!!!!
http://www.pimsleurapproach.com/new-years-resolution-generator/
N.B. -
Percent of Americans who usually make New Year’s Resolutions - 45%
Percent of people in their twenties who achieve their resolution each year - 39%
Percent of people over 50 who achieve their resolution each year - 14%
LOL
Good Luck,
Gudrun
* This item also appears in the January REZ Magazine
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